St. Damon

Chapter 2: Outlandish

(yes this story is inspired by 'the Demon hunters' case in Agent Alice. It's a great game btw)

The big day has arrived. Juana helped Cameron pack, which was easy to do because there wasn't much to take. As a quasi-poor girl she was grateful she had food on her plate, something her parents wouldn't bother to give her as a child. "Cameron, I know this shithole is... a shithole, but I'll miss you and I hope you will miss meeee!!!" Juana chirped, making Cameron giggle. Juana really knew how to lighten up the mood, and was the best roommate Cameron could ever have.

"Are you zoning out again?" She asked lightly, knowing about the girl's spacing out habit. "Oh sorry, Juanita. Yes, I'll miss you lots!" She replied. Despite having many flaws, Cameron liked the Pablo Neruda boarding school. She didn't care if it received criticism more than Beyoncé received fan mail, she didn't care if the press wrote about it in El País as 'a school of animals, with pushers, hazing organizations, and alleged murderers' while sitting comfortably on a leather chair and counting their money. She saw a positive light there, despite all the popularity points issue and the conflict between hippies and popular kids. She wanted to change the school's system, because she deeply cared. She made real friends in class, people who didn't care that she had few PP, that she hadn't made any sex tapes and that she hadn't participated in the hazing or open conflicts. Cameron and her twenty-seven classmates were going to revolutionize the atmosphere, like the hippies in 1968. But she would put even more passion and vigor, unlike those potheads in 1968. To her, that place was a passion and solace generator. One of the pipes in the underground gym was probably connected to the sun. Or it sunk in the hot magma residing in the planet's core. The latter option was more credible. They finished packing when principal Machado told Cameron it was time to go. Juana hugged Cameron before seeing her leave with the principal.

A strenuous check-in, a plane ride and a cab ride later, Cameron was right in front of St. Damon's Boarding School. Principal Machado had given her £50 for the cab ride before leaving his now former student at the gate. Despite not exactly having a close relationship (it was a normal principal-daughter relationship), they had parted with a hug and she had caught her flight just on time. Cameron stared at the boarding school before going in. It had an eerie aura and a tinge of spookiness to it. Looking at it alone evoked an unsettling feeling in Cameron. The building was whiteish-grey on the outside and it had gothic vibes to it. The lake right in front of it was the color of petrol, and its consistency looked too slimy. There was a big oak tree right next to the school. It had started withering, just like the birch tree on the opposite side. The moon was waxing, providing more light for Cameron. The atmosphere was too sinister for her to handle at the moment. She decided to stop staring and treaded the stone pavement especially paved for the college goers. The pavement looked smooth and steady, but in reality it was quite rickety. Cameron's already had enough of the mind tricks. She spared one last glance to the starless sky, the gooey lake, the dying trees and the deceiving pavement before stepping inside.

She didn't know if she was just jet-lagged from her long flight, or if the building was really askew. Her head couldn't stop spinning and she didn't know why. She hadn't felt this way before entering the boarding school. And the building looked upright. 'What the hell is this place... it looks like a creepy version of Hogwarts...' With these thoughts Cameron slipped unconscious, right there, on the purple rug, in front of the old chimney. The fire in it lit itself. Its sprightly yellow flames flickered violently, and they rose. The flames touched Cameron's open left palm, but were unable to wake her up. One flame went further up the girl's arm, till it reached her neck. It penetrated the skin and made its way into a vein. Other flames from inside the fireplace decided to follow the first one, like followers following a leader. But sometimes followers rebel, and some rebellious flames didn't infiltrate Cameron's body in the neck like the first one, but opted to go down and invaded her belly. There were only two flames left in the chimney. One rose, flickered and got to Cameron's right palm. It slithered like a snake upwards, until reaching Cameron's head. That was the flame's choice of penetration. The last flame, the smallest one, remained in the chimney, waiting to be extinguished by the natural force of combustion.